


Sterling, Cooper And Russo

by iloveromance



Category: Mad Men, Wizards of Waverly Place
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:40:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 10,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24161470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveromance/pseuds/iloveromance
Summary: When Alex uses magic without her parents permission, Justin, Max, Harper and Alex find themselves transported back in time... and into Don Draper's world of advertising.
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

"So, in keeping with the Tribeca Prep school tradition, tomorrow I want everyone to bring in their favorite childhood toy and share it with the class." Mr. Laritiate said.

Alex Russo groaned. "Mr. Laritiate, you can't be serious!"

"Why, I'm as serious as a six-gun shootout at a rodeo!" came the reply, along with some imaginary gunfire from the principal's fingers.

Alex rolled her eyes. "Whatever that means."

"It means... Miss Russo, that you will bring in your favorite childhood toy as instructed or you will face severe consequences!" Mr. Laritiate said.

Alex scoffed. "What kind of consequences? Are we going to be forced to watch a Sesame Street marathon?"

The class erupted in laughter.

"You know... that's not a bad idea." Mr. Laritiate mused. "You could use a brush up on your basic education."

"Oooohhhh." Came the class's response.

When the bell rang, the kids scrambled out of their seats.

"Don't forget... toys tomorrow!" Mr. Laritate yelled over the commotion. "And I expect you here on time with a full report!"

"This will be so much fun!" Harper squealed as they left the classroom.

"What's so fun about it?" Alex asked. "It's just another one of his stupid assignments."

"Reliving our childhood!" Harper said. "Seems like a dream come true!"

"More like a nightmare." Alex said.

"Alex, don't you ever want to have any fun?" Harper asked.

"Trust me, anything involving school does not qualify as fun." Alex said. "I can't believe you've fallen for Mr. Laritiate's brainwashing."

"But I'd love to go back to my childhood. I had some of the best times as a kid." Harper said.

Alex looked her friend up and down, shuddering at Harper's latest fashion statement. "Harper... what are you wearing?"

"Oh, do you like it?" Harper grinned. "It's my latest creation; the endangered species ensemble!"

"I'm sorry, but that outfit should be extinct!" Alex said, laughing at her sarcastic comment.

"What's wrong with it?" Harper asked. "See? I'm wearing a Save the Tigers t-shirt, a panda bear skirt, koala socks and a sea otter print jacket."

"And you're asking what's wrong with it? Harper, none of that matches!" Alex said.

"Well of course not, silly!" Harper laughed as she reached into her enormous purse. "That's why I have this!"

"A plush giant spotted owl attached to a headband. Wow! That really pulls the whole outfit together." Alex said, doubting that Harper caught the sarcasm in her voice.

"Miss Russo!" Mr. Laritate called from the doorway.

A groan escaped from Harper and Alex as they slowly turned around.

"I expect to see you here bright and early tomorrow morning, toy in hand and ready to report. You too, Miss Finkle!"

"I can't wait!" Harper said, grinning brightly.

Mr. Laritate smiled. "Now that's what I like to hear. A student excited about learning."

"I wasn't talking about that." Harper said. "I meant that now I'll have an excuse to play with all of my old toys."

Mr. Laritate sighed. "Why didn't I listen to my father and become a baker?"

Alex's eyes went straight to Mr. Laritate's stomach. "Well, you certainly have the figure for it."

Harper's eyes widened in horror. "What are you doing, Alex? Trying to get us kicked out of school?"

Alex smiled thoughtfully. "You know... that's not a bad idea."

"Nice try Russo. But if you need extra incentive, think about this... It's worth 40% of your grade."  
"40%? But you didn't say that to anyone else. You said it was just an assignment!" Alex protested.

"Well, that was before you decided to comment on my choice of careers." Mr. Laritate said.

"See, I told you to keep your mouth shut!" Harper said.

Alex turned to her friend. "You never said that."

"Well, I was going to." Harper said with a shrug.

"I can't wait to get home and start looking through my toys!" Harper said. "It's going to be so much fun!"

"Yeah you mentioned that earlier. Fun, Harper? Are you kidding me? Doing one of Mr. Laritate's assignments is about as fun as listening to Justin attempt to play the guitar. I'd rather listen to a cat screeching!

"Hey! I love cats! They're endangered you know!" Harper said.

Alex rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"Alex, how can you say that? A world without cats would be-."

"A much more pleasant place." Alex said, ignoring her best friend's disgusted look.


	2. Chapter 2

The Basement

"Ugh! Where is it?" Alex yelled in frustration. She rummaged through box after box, sending the unwanted contents flying through the air.

"OW!" Justin yelled as a wooden block smacked him in the head. "Alex! What are you doing?"

"I'm looking for something, duh! What does it look like?"

"It looks like Toys R Us exploded in here!" Justin replied. "Mom and Dad are going to freak when they see this mess!"

"But if I don't find it, I'm totally going to fail!" Alex said.

Justin grinned. "You should be used to that."

"Justin..." Alex whined. "You have to help me!"

"No can do. I have a date with the fair Juliet." Justin said.

Alex scoffed. "You mean the ancient Juliet, don't you?"

"Hey! I resent that!" Justin said.

"I'm sure she does too." Alex said. "I know I would if I was over a thousand years old!"

"Goodbye, Alex." Justin said as he headed up the stairs. "And good luck."

"Good luck? For what?" Alex asked.

"Here comes Mom." Justin said. "See ya!"

"Alex Russo, what have you done?" Teresa Russo said. "Look at this mess!"

"I've seen it, and believe me, it's not pretty." Alex said, laughing at her own comment.

"You're darn right it's not pretty! Clean it up right now! And no using magic!" Teresa said.

"But I have to find this special toy! It's for an assignment at school!"

"What toy? There must be hundreds of toys down here!"

"My stuffed panda! Mr. Snuggles!"

"I don't remember any... Oh yeah... Mr. Snuggles. Wow! That brings back memories." You played with him for hours on end. Sometimes I didn't think I'd ever get him away from you. I remember once time when you-."

"Can you please turn off of Memory Lane and back onto Waverly Place and help me? This is worth 40% of my grade!" Alex whined.

"Well, Honey I threw that thing out ages ago!" Teresa said.

Alex stared at her mother in horror. "You threw out Mr. Snuggles? How could you?"

"You were you were getting way too old for him! And I distinctly remember you having a major fit when Josh Martin came over. You had a big crush on him and you didn't want him to know that you played with dolls. I was spring cleaning and I asked you if you had anything to throw out. The next thing I knew, Mr. Snuggles went flying through the air and straight into the trash bag that I was holding."

"I thought you were being sarcastic!" Alex said. "Moooommm, this is important! This assignment is a totally major thing!"

"Well, Honey, you'll just have to find something else to bring." Teresa said.

"But I loved Mr. Snuggles!" Alex whined.

"Alex, I'm sorry but there's nothing we can do. Now clean up this mess and come upstairs for dinner."

"Fine, but you'll be sorry when I'm 40 years old and still in high school." Alex yelled to her mother as they walked up the stairs.

Teresa stopped suddenly. "If you're 40, that means, I'll be... Oh God, Alex! Don't do that to me! I'll have nightmares!"

"Why you? I'll be the one who's ancient!" Alex said.

"Oh Alex, what am I going to do with you?" Teresa asked when they entered the kitchen.

"I'm sure I can think of something." Alex said.

"That was a rhetorical question." Theresa said.

"Mom, please! Must you always use such scientific words? You act like I have a PhD in Sociogeography or something!"

"Socio-what?" Teresa asked, as Alex opened the refrigerator door, oblivious to her mother's blank look.


	3. Chapter 3

"Whoa!" Harper exclaimed as she entered the basement. "What happened in here?"

"I'm looking for something." Alex explained.

"How can you find anything in here? It looks like-."

"Yeah, yeah. I know. A Toys R Us exploded." Alex finished. "Justin already came up with that gem."

Harper burst out laughing. That's hilarious!"

"It is, isn't it? The idea that Justin can form a coherent thought. Who knew?"

"Justin is so intelligent!" Harper said, clutching her fists to her heart.

"Why thank you, Harper." Justin said as he entered the basement.

"No problem Justin." Harper said; her eyes twinkling with stars.

"Alex, you still haven't cleaned up this mess?" Justin asked.

"I will! Just give me time!" Alex said.

"If Dad sees this, he'll go through the roof!" Justin said.

"Ugh, I know! He's done that before." Alex said. "Man, that has to give a person one heck of a headache."

Just then, footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs.

"That's Dad!" Justin yelled. "He'll kill us!"

Alex hurried to return the toys to their rightful boxes without magic. It wasn't easy.

"What's going on down here?" A young voice said.

"MAX! Don't do that! I thought you were dad! I almost jumped out of my skin!" Alex said.

"Max laughed. "That would have been cool to see!"

"What in the heck are you looking for anyway?" Harper asked.

"Mr. Snuggles, my stuffed panda bear." Alex said.

Max broke into a hysterical fit of laughter. "Mr. Snuggles?"

"Yeah! He was my best friend! Still would be if Mom hadn't thrown him out!" Alex said.

"Hey!" Harper said. "I resent that!"

Alex draped an arm around her friend's shoulders. "But we're best friends now and that's what counts!"

"So just bring another toy." Harper said looking around the room. "God knows you've got enough."  
"Noooo. I can't!" Alex said.

"Why not?" Justin asked.

"Mr. Snuggles, he was the only toy I ever really loved. I could write the most spectacular report about him. would totally freak out! I might even get an A!"

"Now Alex, don't go overboard! Getting A's are not for everyone. You definitely couldn't handle it." Justin advised.

"Thank you, Professor." Alex said. "If only I had Mr. Snuggles. Man, I wish I was a kid again. Heyyyyy... that gives me an idea."

Harper cringed. "Oh no... that can't be good."

"Alex! Mom said no magic!"

Alex pulled out her wand and held it upright, twirling it around and around.

"Two-thousand eleven is really great, but take me back to nineteen-ninety eight!"

The room began to spin, sending its contents swirling through the air.

"What's happening?" Harper yelled as the room spun round and round.

"Just hold on!" Alex yelled, moving her arms as though she were swimming.

"To what?" Justin yelled...

"This is way cool!" Max said as the four of them rotated faster and faster.

Suddenly the swirling stopped and they dropped to the ground with a hard thud.

"Ohhhhh..." Alex groaned. "That hurt!"

"You're not kidding!" Harper said, trying to pull herself to her feet.

"Okay, let's hurry and look in my bedroom, grab Mr. Snuggles and get out of here." Alex said.

Suddenly she stopped and looked around. "Uh... oh..."

"Hey! Where are we?" Harper asked.

"This isn't Waverly Place." Max said.

"We're in a building." Justin said, rising to his feet. He ducked into a nearby office and began to explore. "What is all of this stuff?"

He glanced at the large posters on the wall.

"Advertisements for cigarettes? Are they crazy? Those things will kill you! And what's this? As seen on TV? This is an outrage! Promoting smoking on television? Where in the heck are we?"

"It looks like some kind of museum. Good thing we got in here for free!" Alex laughed.

Suddenly a handsome man in a dark business suit walked into the office.

"Quick! Hide!" Justin hissed.

The four kids gathered in the corner, partially hidden by a large plant. Silently they watched as the man lit a cigarette and sat down at the large wooden desk. He shuffled through some papers and then picked up the phone.

"Peggy, get me Richardson on the phone, now."

"How are we going to get out of here?" Alex whispered.

"Gee, Alex I don't know. This was your big idea, remember?" Max hissed.

The man looked around, as though he had heard the kids talking.

"Someone there?" He asked

When there was no answer, he shook his head in frustration. "I need a drink."

Rising from the huge leather office chair, he crossed the room and went to the bar. "Damn it! I'm out of whiskey again! I'll just have to go get some from Roger."

"Drinking alcohol? At work?" Harper asked, incredulous.

When the man walked out of the office, Justin immediately emerged from his hiding place and urged the others to follow him. "Come on, the coast is clear! We can make a clean break! Just be very quiet!"

Alex, Harper and Max tiptoed across the room to the door, where Justin was entering the hallway. "Let's go." He whispered.

As they rounded a corner unnoticed, Justin did a double take. "Hang on a second..."

"Justin... We have to get out of here!" Alex said.

Justin entered another office, staring at the calendar that hung on the wall. "Oh no..."

"What oh no?" Alex asked.

"Alex, what have you done?" Justin hissed.

"What are you talking about?" Alex asked. "Come on, I want to go! This place is creepy!"

"Tell me about it." Harper said.

"This is horrible!" Justin said. "Which direction did you move your wand?"

"Um... Clock-wise?" Alex said with a shrug.

"This is just great. Don't you know anything? You were supposed to move it COUNTER-clock-wise!"

"Ohhhh..." Alex urged. "So what's the big deal?"

Justin paced the office, his hands on his head in frustration. "Do you realize what you've done?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah... we're in some weird office and there's no sign of Mr. Snuggles!"

"Alex! You've sent us back to 1958!"


	4. Chapter 4

Alex's eyes widened. "1958? But that's not possible!"

"Not possible huh? Then how do you explain that?" Justin asked. He pointed to a woman with a red skin tight dress and red hair that sat high atop her head.

"Oh my God! Mom will freak out!" Alex said.

"She sure will!" Justin said. "As soon as she finds out that you've sent us back to before she was born!"

"No! I mean, here we are... face to face with one of the B-52's! Mom's favorite group! Get me a pen and a piece of paper. I just have to get this woman's autograph!"

Justin threw up his hands in frustration. "Alex, no!"

As the woman disappeared around the corner, Justin grabbed his sister by her shirt and pulled her back with a sigh of relief.

"Thank God she didn't see us."

"But I just-."

"Come on. Let's try to find our way out of here, okay? Now everyone follow me." Justin said.

The four crept down the hallway, bumping into each other when Justin stopped suddenly.

"Hey!" Max said.

"What's the big idea?" Harper asked.

"Shh! Just shut up!" Justin whispered. "Be very quiet!"

"Don, I don't give a damn what he told you!" a silver haired man in a suit was saying to the man they had just seen in the other office.

"Roger, don't start that with me. You know very well that you were the one who-What in the hell are you kids doing in here?"

Harper, Alex, Justin and Max froze in place.

"I asked you a question!" Don said. "How'd you get in here?"

The four exchanged horrified glances.

"Are you DEAF?" Don yelled.

Alex put her hands over her ears. "OW! We are now!"

The man moved closer to the kids.

"Oh no... He's really mad now." Harper groaned. "I knew this was a bad idea."

"Let's make a run for it!" Max said, ready to take off like a race car.

When Roger grabbed Max and Justin, the four kids screamed.

A younger man appeared in the hallway "What in God's name is going on here?"

"I found these hoodlums sneaking around the Sterling Cooper office." Don said.

"Hey! I resent that!" Alex said.

"You don't even know what a hoodlum is." Justin said.

"I do so." Alex said.

"All right, then what is it?" Justin asked, crossing his arms.

"It's a hood...lum." Alex said.

"Come on, let's go." Don said, grabbing Justin by the arm.

"How did you kids get in here?" the younger man asked.

"Well, Pete... that seems to be the $24 question." Don said.

"I want them out of here immediately!" Roger said.

"PEGGY!" Don yelled.

Almost instantly a young woman appeared at his side, wearing the most hideous brown and blue dress that Alex had ever seen, holding a pen and paper.

"Yes, Mr. Draper?"

"Peggy, would you please escort these kids out of the building and back to where they came from?"

The woman stared at Justin, Max, Harper and Alex in surprise.

"But Mr. Draper, I-."

"JUST DO IT, PEGGY!" Don yelled, startling the hallway into silence.

"Damn kids..." He muttered.

At Peggy's horrified look, he sighed. "Look. I'm sorry. I have what could be a million dollar account at stake and I'm not going to lose it!"

Without another word, he returned to his office.

The four stared at Peggy who had her hands on her hips. "Well? You want to tell me how you got in here?"

Alex laughed. "You'd never believe it."

Peggy crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Try me."

Harper groaned. "Oh no..."

"This should be interesting." Max said.

"That's the understatement of the 21st century." Justin said.

At Peggy's confused look, he slapped his forehead with his hand.

"I-I mean..."

"Way to go, Loser!" Alex said.

"This is going to be a long afternoon." Harper groaned.


	5. Chapter 5

Waverly Sub Station

"Have you seen Alex?" Mason asked.

"No, I haven't." Jerry said. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen Justin, Max or Harper either. That must be why it's been so quiet around here." He added with a laugh.

"Jerry!" Teresa said.

"I thought Alex was with you, Mason." Jerry said.

"She told me to meet her here." Mason said. "We're supposed to go to the movies. A classic double feature; Teen Wolf and Teen Wolf 2." He smiled proudly.

"Why am I not surprised?" Jerry asked. "Well, Mason. It seems that all of our children-and Harper-have all disappeared."

"Well, do you know when they'll be back?" Mason asked.

"Knowing Alex, it could be anytime." Teresa said. "But it's just not like Max and Justin to run off like this. They're our good kids!"

"Can I get some service over here?" A booming voice called from the back of the sub shop.

"Get it yourself! I've got four missing kids to worry about!" Teresa yelled.

The customer rose from the table, sending the chair he'd been sitting in crashing to the floor.

"Whoa!" Jerry said when the man stood at full height. He was easily seven feet tall.

Thinking quickly he grabbed a pen and an order pad, craning his neck to look the man in the face.

"So..." his voice came out in a squeak. "What can I get you?"

"I'll have the foot long." The man said.

Good choice." Jerry said.

"This is terrible!" Mason said.

"Actually, being so tall is a good thing." Jerry said, pointing to the man. "The Knocks really need some more tall players. They had a terrible team last year!"

"I'm talking about Alex!" Mason said. "I was really looking foreword to our date tonight!"

Jerry frowned. "Man, I really wish Justin was here to make a sarcastic comment."

"Jerry! That's not funny!" Teresa said. "They've been gone for an awfully long time and I'm really worried!"

Jerry put his arm around his wife. "Now Teresa. I'm sure they're fine. Justin is a responsible young man."

At Teresa's raised eyebrows, he frowned. "You're right. I should have never taught him to fend for himself!"

"All right. Let's keep calm." Mason said. "There has to be a reasonable explanation for all of this."

"Exactly." Jerry said.

"But sadly I have no idea what it could be." Mason said.

Jerry squinted in confusion.

"HEY! MY ORDER?" The tall customer yelled from his table.

"Oh my God, I completely forgot!" Teresa said.

In a panic, she ran into the kitchen, throwing everything and anything between two sub rolls and tossed it into a small red basket.

She smiled as she walked over to Jerry and hurled the basket like a Frisbee. The sandwich sailed through the air, miraculously landing in place directly in front of the man.

Teresa, Mason and Jerry watched in anticipation as the man picked up the sandwich, took a bite and then smiled.

"Mmmm... Now that's a sandwich!"


	6. Chapter 6

Peggy, the woman in the hideous dress, glared at them.

"All right, you kids want to explain what you're doing here?" She demanded.

"Not really." Alex replied.

"Alex!" came Justin's warning.

"Oh please, Justin! We can't get into trouble! It's not like we purposely came here from the future!"

Justin and Max cringed and put their hands on their head in disbelief.

"The Future of Office Workers. It's a... school club. Um... we're here to see what it'll be like when we get jobs of our own. Right Justin?"

"Right... Alex."

"Well, Mr. Draper says that you kids need to get home immediately. So where do you live?"

"Umm..." Max stuttered.

"Out with it! Now!" Peggy demanded once more.

"Um... Waverly Place." Max replied.

Peggy put her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Waverly, huh? That's impossible."

"Are you calling us liars?" Alex asked.

"I should be calling your parents!" Peggy yelled. She grabbed the kids by the collars and dragged them down the hallway.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!"

When they reached a large office with a long table and a group of adults sitting around, she thrust Alex, Justin and Max inside.

Immediately Don stood up. "Peggy what in the hell is this? Can't you see we're in a meeting?"

"Maybe they can explain it to you better than I can." Peggy said.

Twelve pairs of eyes stared at them as they looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

Justin laughed nervously. "H-Hi... How's it going?"

"It's going to be trouble unless you kids don't get out of here!" Roger yelled.

"Hey! Little girl! What are you doing?"

Alex swung around to see Pete Campbell pointing at her.

"I'm not a little girl!" She yelled. "I'm practically a woman!"

Justin and Max glanced at each other and burst into hysterical laughter, which resonated throughout the room, accompanied by laughter from the adults.

"What's so funny?" Alex asked.

Pete scoffed. "I'm sorry but you're hardly what I would call an adult."

"Oh, and you are? You can't be any older than Mason. But then come to think of it, he's a-."

"A lot older than you, Alex." Justin interjected. "Isn't he... Max?"

At this Max laughed. "Oh yeah. He's a LOT older!"

Alex returned to her place at the front of the room, gazing at the posters that were spread on the easels.

"What is all this stuff?"

Don sighed. "Well not that it's any of your business, but this is the new spring lineup for the JC Penney catalog."

"New designer dresses for women." Pete added as though Alex was unable to figure that out.

Alex laughed. "These ugly things? They look like something out of the fifties!"

When the men and women exchanged confused glances, Justin cringed once more.

"Well, that was the general idea." One of the women said.

"Um... what Alex means is that these dresses are perfect for this generation. Don't you, Alex?"

"No, Justin! I-I mean yes! And I know a way to make them even more perfect!"


	7. Chapter 7

Don folded his arms across his body. "Really? Well this I want to see."

"Um, Alex, we really need to get going!" Max said, pulling at his sister's sleeve.

But Don held up his hand. "Wait a minute. Let her finish. Go on Miss..."

"Russo." Alex replied.

"Miss Russo. So tell me your idea."

"Well, for one thing, what is this supposed to be?"

"I thought that was obvious. A dress."

"Riiighht, a dress. For one thing the color is horrible."

"You don't like brown?" One of the men asked.

Alex scoffed. "Not with this big greenish-bluish bowtie thing that looks like the color of the scum on our bathroom wall. And these shoes..."

"Alex!" Harper yelled.

"Go on, Miss Russo." Don prompted.

Alex looked at the dress once more. "Take it from me, women are crazy about shoes and these will never do. Come on, seriously? Big clunky shoes with a dress that's way too short? I'd totally get kicked out of school for that... Oh wait, I have."

"So what kind of shoes do you recommend, Miss Russo?"

Alex looked at the picture thoughtfully. "Definitely flats."

Don blinked. "Flats?"

"Yeah, you know... Ohhh... I guess you don't. I'll show you."

With that, she picked up a pair of scissors from the table and cut the shoes off of the drawing, using the blank sheet behind it to draw a pair of black flats, complete with bows on top. Then she folded her arms and admired her handiwork.

"There! That's awesome. I should buy a pair when I get home." She laughed.

Don looked at her in fascination, which made her grin with pride.

"And, well... this belt has got to go." She grabbed a nearby black marker and scribbled through the large bow on the neck and then the belt, causing the men and women to gasp.

"And how do you suppose we make it better?" Pete asked.

She rolled her eyes at the annoying man who looked even younger than Mason. And she guessed that Mason was a lot smarter too.

Ignoring the protests of the adults, she grabbed a large sheet of paper and began drawing a new dress, creating an entirely new image.

An older man stood up and groaned. "All right kids, get out. Now!"

Don looked at the kids thoughtfully.

"Just a minute, Bert. You know, this isn't a bad idea at all. It's fresh... different. Tell me more Miss Russo."

"Don, are you drunk again?"

"What if I am, Roger? Wouldn't be any different than any other day. Go on, Miss Russo."

"Okay, well if you make the skirt a little flow-erier and change the color. Anything but this. What's wrong with red, or green or blue-."

"Or fuchsia?" chimed a familiar voice.

"Harper! I already said green!" Alex said.

"Green? Fuchsia's not green! It's... oh never mind." Harper said.

"Go on." Roger prompted.

"I think I'll let Harper take over."

Harper smiled brightly. "Gee, thanks Alex!"

"Okay, Miss..."

"Finkle. Harper Finkle."

Harper giggled nervously, stopping abruptly when she saw the stares of the adults.

"Sorry!"

"Harper, tell them your ideas. You want to work in the fashion industry someday, don't you?"

"You're right, Justin." Harper said. "You're so smart!"

The men around the table cleared their throats in irritation.

Bert glared at her. "We're waiting, Miss Finkle."

"I know... Well... what if instead of this plain dress, it was decorated with... I don't know..."

She looked around the room for ideas. "Little hats?"

The women nodded in agreement, then jumped in surprise when Alex and Harper burst into song.

"What's that? A hat? Crazy, funky, junky hat? Overslept? Hair unsightly? Trying to look like Kiera Knightly? We've been there, we've done that, we see right through your funky hat!"

When they gave each other a high five, they turned to the adults at the table who were staring at them in disbelief.

"Who's Kiera Knightly?" one of the men asked.

At a loss, Harper and Alex looked at each other.

"Um..."

"Well, she hasn't been born yet." Justin said. "But your grandchildren will love her."


	8. Chapter 8

A stern looking man rose from his chair and pointed to the door. "All right out! Now!"

"Hold on, Mr. Thompson." Don said, pressing the intercom button. "Peggy, could you come in here?"

Alex, Max, Justin and Harper looked at each other in horror.

"Yes, Mr. Draper?"

"Peggy, bring some milk and cookies for my new friends into my office, okay?"

Peggy blinked. "You want me to do what?"

"You heard me, Peggy! So do it! Now!"

"Right away, Mr. Draper."

When she was gone, Don looked at Harper, who was trembling with fear.

"Well, you certainly had some interesting ideas. Who would have thought of putting everyday objects on clothing?"

Harper grinned and blushed. "Thanks!"

Don turned to Alex. "And you... Nice work on the shoes."

"Yeah, well don't get used to it. I definitely don't do good things that often." Alex laughed.

"What's this do?" Max yelled from the back of the room.

Justin's eyes widened at the seltzer bottle that Max held in his hand; his finger firmly on the lever. "Max, don't!"

But it was too late. A stream of seltzer shot out, hitting Burt squarely in the back of the head, soaking his clothing in the process.

The room exploded with laughter, except for Burt, whose face was filled with rage.

Peggy stood in the doorway, afraid to go inside.

"Mr. Draper?"

"Yes, Peggy?"

"The milk and cookies are in your office, just like you asked."

"Great."

At the look of rage on Burt's face, the kids scrambled out of the room and into the hallway, anxious to get away from the scary adults.

"Hey Harper!"

Harper froze and turned around. "Um... yes?"

Nice work on the fashion ideas. You want a job here?"

Harper's eyes widened. "You mean it?"

"Absolutely! We could use some new ideas. Job's yours if you want it."

Harper's smile was so bright that Alex found began to squint.

"Gee, thanks!" Harper said, laughing nervously.

"When can you start?" Don asked.

Alex dragged Harper out of the board room.

"How about never? Come on, Harper!"

When the boys ran to catch up with Harper and Alex, they were stopped by Don's stern voice.

"Hey Max!"

Shaking like leaves, they slowly turned to face him.

"Um... Yes, Mr. Draper?" Max asked, in a surprisingly timid voice.

Don's mouth curved into a smile.

"Nice shot."


	9. Chapter 9

Don ducked his head into his office and smiled. "Are you kids enjoying yourselves?"

The kids nodded in agreement.

"Oh yeah!"

"Uh huh..."

"Yep!"

"Yum!"

"Good! Well when you finish up, I'll drive you home. I'm sure your parents are worried."

A collective gasp followed.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Alex lied.

"Okay. Well, we'd better get going." Don said. "Where do you live?"

"They say they live on Waverly." Peggy said, appearing at Don's office door.

Don grinned. "Really? We're neighbors, then."

"Right... Neighbors." Alex said, turning to Harper, Max and Justin.

"You know, that's okay, Mr. Draper. You don't have to drive us home."

"Um... what Justin means..." Harper explained. "Is that we can get home on our own!"

"All right, if you're sure." Don said.

"We're sure." Alex nodded. "Wait! What am I thinking? I can't go home!"

"Alex, what are you talking about?"

"Harper, what about our assignment? Mr. Laritate, Mom and Dad will kill me if I fail!"

"What assignment?" Don asked.

"I have to bring a toy to school and if I don't, Mr. Laritate will fail me and I won't graduate!"

"Don't you have toys at home?"

Alex looked at her brothers and best friend and feigned tears, anxious to take advantage of the situation. "I did, but our mom got rid of them all!"

"Alex, Alex, Alex, it's all right." Justin said as the three kids moved toward her, hugging her sympathetically.

"Don't cry, Alex. We love you." Max said.

"Come on Alex. We'll think of something when we get home." Justin said.

"Hopefully Mr. Laritate won't fail you too badly."

"Thank you for the milk and cookies, Mr. Draper." Harper said as they walked out of the room.

"Hold it." Don said.

They turned to see him looking at them thoughtfully.

"Why don't the three of you come with me?"

Harper swallowed hard. "Oh no... I think we're in big trouble."


	10. Chapter 10

The kids shook with fear as they followed Don to his car.

"What do you think he's gonna do to us?" Harper whined. "I don't want to die like this! I haven't even been born yet!"

"We're not going to die! Just get in the car and do what he says and we'll be fine." Justin reassured her.

"I hope so because Mom will kill us if she sees us talking to strangers." Max said.

"Okay, everyone ready?" Don asked, smiling as he started the ignition.

"Um... hold on." Justin said. "I need to put my seatbelt on."

"It's not that far." Don replied. "We'll be there in fifteen minutes."

"That's all it takes." Max pointed out. "Statistics show that most accidents occur within five miles of the home. Now do you really want to subject unsuspecting kids like us to such tragedy?"

Justin scoffed. "How could you possibly know a thing like that? You can't even spell statistics!"

"Sure I can!" Max said. "S-T-A-T-S!"

"Look, would you two just hush up?" Alex sneered. "I'd like to get to wherever it is we're going in one place!"

They drove in silence and soon they entered a neighborhood.

"Wow, this looks like a scene right out of Father Knows Best!" Alex said.

"Since when do you watch Father Knows Best?"

Alex scoffed. "I've watched it!"

"Yeah right." Justin said.

Don smiled. "My wife Betty loves that show. In fact there's a new episode on tonight. Last week she made me leave work early so that I could come home and watch it with her. She insisted that we watch it as a family."

"Why didn't you just TiVo it?"

Justin threw up his hands in frustration. "Max!"

Don gave Max a blank stare.

"TiVo? What's that?"

"Oh, it's way cool! Max continued, ignoring Justin's death glare. "Just do a search for it on a search engine and you can read all about it!"

"What kind of engine?"

"A Search engine. You know like on the internet?"

Before Justin could kill his little brother, Don had slowed the car to a stop in front of a house that could have belonged to Ward and June Cleaver.

"Cool! I thought it'd be all black and white and stuff." Max mused as he looked around the neighborhood.

"We're here." Don said.

As quickly as possible the kids scrambled out of the car and followed Don up the walkway that lay in the middle of the perfectly landscaped lawn.

"Excuse me, Mr. Draper, but what are we doing here?" Harper asked.

"There's someone I'd like you to meet." Don said, unlocking the door.

Justin cringed. "I don't like the sound of this. And Max has a point we really shouldn't be going into a stranger's house. Remember what happened when we were in that Ruby Donahue movie, Alex?"

"Oh yeah..." Alex said, swallowing hard. "Maybe we should go."

"This'll only take a few minutes." Don said with a smile. "Now come on in."

At his brother and sister's worried looks, Max put his hands on their shoulders.

"As long as he has cable TV, everything will be all right."


	11. Chapter 11

They walked through the house, feeling as though they'd stepped into an episode of Donna Reed. In the kitchen, a beautiful blonde woman was busy cooking.

When she saw them watching her, she looked up and smiled.

"Don! You're home early."

Don smiled and kissed the woman.

"Betty, I'd like you to meet some friends of mine. This is Max, Alex, Justin and Harper."

"Pleased to meet you." Betty said, extending her hand.

"So what are you doing home so early?"

"I wanted Alex to meet Sally. Where is she?"

"In her room, playing. But tell her that dinner is almost ready. You know how long she takes to get down here."

"Thanks. I'll tell her."

Don led them up the stairs and to a room that most certainly belonged to a little girl; decorated in shades of pink.

"Wow, this is a cool room!" Alex exclaimed.

Justin smirked. "Sure, if you're six!"

"Kids, I'd like you to meet my daughter Sally."

They glanced at the little girl who sat in the middle of the floor.

Alex walked into the room and sat cross-legged on the floor facing Sally.

"Hey, how's it going?"

"What's that mean?" Sally asked, barely glancing up from her dollhouse.

"Well, it just means-."

"This is a really nice room." Justin said, giving Don an awkward glance. "But why are we here?"

"Well, since Alex obviously needs a toy for her school project, I thought you might like to have one of Sally's."

The kids looked at each other in amazement.

"Wow, that's really nice of you!" Harper said, grinning a little too brightly.

"I don't want to take something that she loves." Alex said. "She might get upset!"

"Since when do you care what people think?" Justin asked; his arms crossed.

"Since now!" Alex retorted.

"All right." Don crossed the room and surveyed the huge array of toys that filled the shelves. "How about this one?"

Alex's eyes widened at the sight of the toy that Don held in his hand.

"Oh my God, a Howdy Doody doll, still in the original box!" Justin said.

"You have one already?" Don quipped.

"No, but Mr. Laritate loves Howdy Dewey!" Alex said with excitement.

"DOODY!" Justin and Don corrected.

"Hey!" Max said, holding up his hand.

"Hey, what?"

"Justin, not in front of the kid! She's too young for that kind of talk!" Max warned.

Justin sighed. "Mr. Draper can we have the doll? It would really help us out."

"Well, sure."

"But what about Sally?"

"Actually someone at the office gave me that doll. Apparently they think that Sally is a boy. It's been sitting in that box for the longest time. She took one look at it and threw a tantrum until I agreed to take her shopping for something else."

Justin stared longingly at the box. "But it's so valuable..."

"I guess." Don shrugged. "I don't see how, though. They make hundreds of them."

"So, can we?"

"All right, it's yours."

The kids screamed with excitement and hugged each other.

"Okay, now we can get out of here!" Justin said.

"Dinner's ready!" Betty called from the kitchen.

"You kids want to stay for dinner? It's meatloaf night." Don said.

"Actually we should probably get home."

"Well, how about if I give you a lift?"

"No thank you, Mr. Draper. We can get home on our own." Harper grinned.

"At least let me escort you out."

They followed him downstairs to the doorway.

"I guess this is goodbye then."

Betty appeared next to her husband. "Goodbye? Don, didn't you even ask them to stay for dinner?"

"Of course, but it seems they're in a hurry to get home."

"I can't wait to post about this on Facebook!" Max said, wincing when Justin lightly punched him in the arm.

Betty looked them in surprise. "Face-what?"

"Never mind. Come on let's get out of here. Thanks again Mr. Draper!"

"No problem!" Don waved from the door. "You're welcome to visit anytime!"

Alex scoffed. "I don't see that happening anytime soon!"


	12. Chapter 12

When they were a safe distance away from the Draper's home, Alex pulled out her wand.

"Okay, let's go... 1958 is really..."

Justin yanked the wand from Alex's hand. "Give me that! You got us into this mess, remember?"

The four of them huddled together and Justin waved the wand in a counter-clockwise circle.

"Time travel is really fun but take us back to where we... be-gun."

Alex rolled her eyes. "What a lame spell!"

"Oh and you have a better one?" Justin scoffed.

All of a sudden they were swept up in a whirlwind, with objects flying all around them.

And almost as quickly as it began, they landed with a thud in the basement.

Seconds later, two sets of footsteps could be heard running down the stairs followed by a clanging noise.

"OW!" Teresa yelled, banging her head on the metal bar that hung below the ceiling.

"What in the world is going on down here?" Jerry yelled.

Teresa and Jerry stopped in their tracks when they noticed Justin, Alex, Harper and Max sprawled out on the floor of the attic.

"Oh, mios! Are you okay?" Teresa rushed toward the kids, preparing to scoop them into her arms. However, she stopped suddenly when she noticed the wands that Alex and Justin were holding.

"What's this?"

Alex looked around and shrugged.

"Looks like a basement to me!"

At this Max laughed along with her and gave her a high five.

But Teresa was not amused. Her hands perched on her hips, she glared at the kids.

"How many times have I told you not to use magic without my permission?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "But Mo-om...!"

"But nothing!" Jerry interjected. "You kids are in big trouble! Now, you'd better start explaining yourselves right now! And don't give me any of that-."

He stopped suddenly; his eyes transfixed on the colorful box that lay on the floor beside the kids.

Cautiously he bent down and picked it up, cradling it as though it were a baby.

"What's this?"

Once more Alex rolled her eyes.

"Geez Dad, I already told you! It's a boring old basement! Now just punish us and get it over with! I want to go to my room and call Mason!"

"YOU'RE NOT CALLING ANYONE YOUNG LADY!" Teresa yelled. "Perhaps you've forgotten about the meaning of the word grounded!"

Alex scoffed. "Yeah, like I'd ever forget that!"

"Oh my... Do you have any idea what this is?"

They all turned to find Jerry staring in awe at the colorful box.

"Jerry, what's gotten into you?"

"Teresa, do you have any idea what this is?" Jerry asked again.

"No..." She said carefully.

At his dad's stunned look, Justin rose to his feet and moved closer.

"Dad, are you all right?"

"I'm not sure, Justin. But this is... incredible."

"Why? It's just a dumb old doll." Alex said.

Jerry cringed in horror. "How can you say that? This is a genuine Howdy Doody original!"

Max gasped and clamped his hand over his mouth.

"Dad! How can you use such colorful language in front of your own children? And here I thought you were a good role model!"

Jerry looked at his son in confusion. "What? Oh... No, I said Howdy Doody, not-... Never mind..."

"So? What's the big deal?" Alex asked.

Jerry paced the basement floor, unable to take his eyes off of the box. "Man, I haven't seen one of these since I was a kid! Where did you get this?"

The kids looked at one another in horror.

"Um..."

"Well? Aren't you going to answer your father?" Teresa yelled.

The room was eerily silent and all eyes fell on Alex.

"What?" Alex asked. Then, seconds later...

"All right! It was me! I admit it! I'm the one who used magic and get that stupid doll!

But it was only because I wanted to give it to-."

"Hold it right there!" Jerry said. "Alex... This is very..."

"Disappointing, I know..." She finished. "Go ahead and yell at me. It's not like I can't handle it."

"Actually, there's something I've wanted to do since you got home."

For the first time since she could ever remember, Alex was afraid of her father. Backing away slowly, she clung to her brothers. "I'm sorry, Dad... Really I am!"

"So am I." Jerry replied.

"I promise, I'll never use magic again!" Alex said; her voice suddenly childlike.

"That won't be necessary." Jerry said.

"I-it won't?"

Jerry shook his head.

"Come here."

Alex cast a worried look at Max, Justin and Harper, cringing when she saw Max start to pray silently. Slowly she moved toward her father, every bone in her body shaking with fear.

"Alex?"

"Yes, Daddy?"

And suddenly he spread his arms and enveloped her in the biggest hug she could ever imagine.

When he drew back, Alex could only stare at her father in disbelief.

"Dad... what's going on?"

"Alex, I just can't believe that you'd do something so thoughtful."

Alex blinked in astonishment.

"Huh?"

"HUH?" Echoed Harper, Max and Justin.

"You used magic to go back in time and find something that I've been wanting for so many years. Do you have any idea how many internet searches I've done trying to find even a Howdy Doody replica? And just when I thought it was a lost cause, you bring me the most wonderful present a dad could ever want."

"Well actually, Dad-."

He hugged her again.

"Thank you so much, Alex. You have no idea how much this means to me."

"Actually I do." Alex said against his shirt. "And that's what I'm afraid of."


	13. Chapter 13

Alex swallowed hard and turned to her brothers who only shrugged.

"Thanks a lot!" She muttered.

Jerry crossed his arms in front of his body. "Alex, what's going on?"

Slowly she returned her gaze to her dad.

"Well? We're waiting!" Teresa said.

"Dad... The Howdy Doody doll... It's not for you."

"What?"

When she didn't respond, Jerry began to laugh. "That's a good one, Alex! For a minute I thought-."

But she remained quiet.

And finally he understood.

"Oh... Well... I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions the way I did. Here... you can have your doll back."

The disappointed look on his face stunned her. She'd seen that look before of course... hundreds of times before, but only when she'd disappointed him with her grades, her actions, her words, her magic...

Never because of some dumb doll.

She held the box in her hand, watching as her dad smiled sadly. "Well, just... take good care of that box. Believe me, that is in pristine condition and I'd hate for whomever you're planning on giving it to... Come on, Teresa. Let's go."

As her parents walked up the stairs, narrowly missing the pipe that usually clanged them on the head, Alex felt worse than ever.

When they were gone, Alex turned to her brothers in disgust.

"Well, you two were a big help!" She yelled.

Max and Justin threw up their hands in confusion. "What?"

"You could have at least explained to Dad why we got that stupid doll in the first place! Now he's all mad and probably hates me!"

"Probably." Max nodded, wincing as Justin punched him in the arm.

"What am I supposed to do now?" Alex asked.

"It's your stupid assignment!" Justin said. "Just go and tell Dad the truth. He's bound to be so shocked that you're actually doing homework that he'll forget all about that stupid doll!"

While Justin and Max howled with laughter, Alex rolled her eyes and ran upstairs. She looked in every room, finding no sign of her father.

"That's just great! The one time I want to talk to him and he's nowhere around!"

Finally she ran into the Wizard lair where she found him engrossed in a television program.

"Dad?"

Obviously startled by her presence, he grabbed the remote and turned off the television, scrambling to find a book.

"Alex... you startled me!"

"What are you doing?"

"Me? Oh... I was just... Working on the next wizard lesson!"

"Really?"

He laughed nervously. "Of course! What did it look like I was doing?"

"Well... It looked like you came up here to get away from me because I disappointed you."

He sighed deeply. "All right you got me."

"Dad, I'm sorry!" Alex whined. "I didn't know you wanted that stupid doll so much.

But I didn't get it for you. It's for Mr. Laritate."

"Oh... I see... Well, I didn't realize he was so special to you, but I'm glad."

"Ewww... Dad, get real! It's not a present! It's for that stupid assignment at school! We have to bring in a toy and Mom threw away Mr. Snuggles! If I don't do this assignment, I'll fail!"

He stared at her in amazement. "Really? Alex..."

"Yes! I know, I know... I fail all the time so why should this be any different?"

"No... I just... I'm so proud of you, Honey. You're really growing up to be a responsible young woman."

"Oh man, really?" Alex groaned. "Darn, I really need to work on preventing that from happening!"


	14. Chapter 14

"Oh, hey Alex!"

Alex groaned at the sight of her best friend, who was much too chipper for so early in the morning. And her outfit was even worse.

"Harper, what are you wearing?"

Harper beamed and spun around, showing off her dress with pride.

"Do you like it? I made it especially for today."

"A dress made out of toys, Harper? Really?"

Harper looked down at her much too colorful dress that was adorned with plastic blocks, tiny stuffed animals and miniature Barbie dolls.

"Yeah, what's wrong with it?"

"Um... nothing." Alex shrugged. "If you're four!" She added with a laugh. "What demon possessed you to wear that?"

"Duh Alex! None! Besides, there's no such thing as demons!" Harper stated. "Besides, I'm wearing this for our project."

At Alex's blank look, Harper gasped in horror. "Oh Alex, please tell me you didn't forget to bring your toy! Mr. Laritate will kill you!"

"No! Of course I brought it! What do you think this is?" Alex said, holding up the large bag in her hand.

"Oh, can I see?"

As Harper reached for the bag, Alex jerked it away. "No! Harper I don't want you to see it! My dad said it was in pre-clean condition and he doesn't want anything to happen to it!"

Harper scoffed. "Fine, if you're going to be that way, then I won't show you my toy either!"

Alex looked her friend up and down and then rolled her eyes. "Harper, you're wearing your toys."

Harper laughed nervously and playfully punched Alex in the arm. "Aww! You did notice! Thanks Alex!"

"Yeah, well it's kind of hard not to!"

The bell rang catching them off-guard and they ran for their classroom.

"Wow, this is weird..." Alex said. "I actually want to go to class!"

"Yea Alex! I knew you'd come around!" Harper cheered.

"Yeah, probably should go and see the nurse about that one." Alex said.

When the second warning bell rang, they raced into the classroom and found their seats mere seconds before Mr. Laritate entered the room. He was wearing, of all things, a cowboy outfit and in his hand was a long stick with a plush pony's head attached to it.

Alex cringed at the sight. "Ugh! That looks like something I saw in Night of the Halloween Sorority Party Disaster 2... Without the scary gross stuff."

Mr. Laritate's eyes narrowed. "Cute, Russo... But I'll have you know that this little guy means a lot to me, don't you Mr. Buckaroo?"

He pulled a string attached to the back of the plush horse's head, laughing at the recorded whinny sound it made

"Yes, Cowboys and Cowgirls, Mr. Buckaroo is my favorite toy. I got him as a young when I was just a naive little cowboy... Why it seems like almost yesterday..."

As Mr. Laritate droned on and on, Alex rolled her eyes and turned to Harper. "He does know that this class is only fifty-five minutes, right?"


	15. Chapter 15

"So... who's going to be the first to share their special toy with us?"

At Mr. Laritate's question, Harper's hand shot up in the air and waved back and forth. "Me! Me! Me!"

Mr. Laritate put his finger to his mouth and stared at the class, deep in thought.

"Hmm... I'll pick... Harper Finkle!"

"Yea!" Harper jumped out of her chair and ran to the front of the room.

As Harper showed off her toys and launched into o a much too lengthy-and much too enthusiastic story, Alex's mind began to wander.

She couldn't help thinking about Mr. Draper and how completely and totally weird he was. But he turned out to be cool-even if he did live in a very lame era. How could he possibly survive without...?

"Miss Russo!"

Mr. Laritate's bold voice startled her out of her thoughts and she jerked her head to attention.

"Yes, Mr. Laritate?"

"Miss Russo, I believe that you're our last participant. I trust that you did the assignment and brought your special toy?"

"Yep, shore did!" Alex said proudly in a very bad southern accent.

"Well, let's see it then!" Mr. Laritate said.

Alex dragged the huge bag to the front of the room and smiled at her classmates.

"Well, this is... Um... Well... something that someone gave to my dad to give to me. Um yeah, that sounds good. So I guess they thought I was some dumb boy like my brothers because they gave me this stupid doll. Now it may not look like much but it is in pre-clean condition."

"Pre-clean, Miss Russo?"

"Yeah, you know, like new?"

"Oh, you mean pristine!"

"That's what I said; pre-clean!"

Now it was Mr. Laritate who rolled his eyes. "Go on, Miss Russo."

Slowly Alex reached into the bag and pulled out the Howdy Doody box, displaying the doll for everyone to see.

The sight brought a ripple of laughter across the room and a gasp of astonishment from Mr. Laritate.

"Miss Russo, I'm appalled!"

Alex sighed and held up her hands in surrender. "Fine! I give up! Go ahead and fail me! I'm sorry I'll never be as good of a student as Justin is and I should have brought a better toy with me. But the truth is that my mom got rid of my most favorite toy; my stuffed panda bear Mr. Snuggles so I had to go and find a new one-well an old one but still... I just wanted to do the assignment and get it over with."

The room was deadly silent and she felt all eyes on her. "I know, I know! I'm a bad role model and don't deserve such a good education. Blah, blah, blah I heard this last period!"

"Miss Russo, stop!"

Once again the room fell silent.

Mr. Laritate paced the room and then walked over to where Alex stood, his arms crossed in front of his rotund body.

Alex swallowed hard, realizing for the first time how afraid she was.

"Mr. Laritate if you'd just let me explain..."

"Darn tootin' you'll explain, Alex Russo! Explain to me how you managed to acquire this marvelous treasure!"

When he began to laugh, her mouth fell open in stunned amazement. "What?"

"Alex Russo, I expected a lot out of you, but I never expected this! A genuine rare Howdy Doody doll in such pristine condition! Why, I went for years beging for one of these!"

Mr Laritate took the box and kissed it, causing his students to starte at him in disbelief as he proceeded to hug it against his body.

"So does that mean that I didn't fail?" Alex asked hopefully.

Once more Mr. Laritate laughed.

"Why, no Deputy Russo! In fact, I'm giving you the highest grade in the class! An A+!"


	16. Chapter 16

Alex's eyes widened. "Really?"

Mr. Laritate smiled proudly. "You've done some fine work here, Deputy Russo!"

"Hey wait!" Riley yelled. "You're giving her an A+? What kind of presentation was that?"

"A brilliant one!" Mr. Laritate replied.

Relishing in her new found stardom, Alex eyed the Howdy Doody box carefully.

"Something on your mind, Deputy Russo?"

"Actually yes. This is for you, Mr. Laritate."

Mr. Laritiate put his hand over his heart. "Alex... This is... I don't know what to say. Thank you. Your generosity should be an example to all!"

Alex flashed a smile at her classmates who were not amused.

"You're welcome, Mr. Laritate."

"However..." He continued. "I'm afraid I can't accept this."

"WHAT?" Alex and Harper yelled.

"Mr. Laritate, do you have ANY idea how much trouble we went through to get that?"

"I sure do, Deputy Russo." Mr. Laritate replied in a perfect southern drawl. "But I already have two of these Howdy Doody dolls of my own!"

Timidly, Alex walked into the Waverly Sub Station kitchen; her father's gift in her hands.

"Dad?"

He turned and smiled when he saw her.

"Oh hey, Alex!"

"I have a surprise for you."

"Oh, let me guess... You used magic without my permission again? Alex How many times have I told you-."  
She held out the box for him to see and he gasped at the sight.

"Isn't that-But what about-How did you-What about your project, Honey?"

Alex smiled. "I got an A+!"

Jerry's jaw nearly fell to the ground. "You got an A+?"  
"I know... Hard to believe, isn't it?"

"It's wonderful! Congratulations, Alex! You know what? This calls for a celebraton! I'm gonna do something special for you, so just njame it. Anything at all!"

A weird feeling came over Alex just then. She felt... compassion for her dad. After all he was the one who was always doing things for her.

"Oooohhh! Make this feeling go away!" She whined, shaking her head back and forth.

"I can't be turning good... again!"

"Are you okay, Alex?"

"Yeah, but I might as well get this over with."

Alex handed the Howdy Doody box to Jerry. "This is for you."

Jerry looked at the doll in surprise.

"Oh Alex, are you sure?"

"Yeah. Well, I was going to give it to Mr. Laritate but then I remembered how much you wanted it."

"Really? Alex... I'm touched."

Jerry hugged her even tighter than before and she couldn't help but smile. It was nice being good once in a while. But she certainly didn't want to make a habit of it. How lame would that be?

"Oh... Mason as asking about you earlier." Jerry said.

"Dad, you didn't tell him where I was, did you?"

"Um no... Because you never told me where you were. But he did say that he'd be over in a little while. He even asked my permission to take you to the movies. You know... I've always liked him!"  
Alex's eyes narrowed. "When did that start?"

"It doesn't matter." Jerry replied. "What matters is that he likes you and you like him."|

"Thanks, Dad." Alex said, hugging her father once more.

"You're welcome, Alex."

Jerry looked up to see Harper and Mason standing at the door to the Waverly Sub Station and smiled. "I think you have visitors."

Alex turned to find Mason and Harper waving to her.

"Have a good time, kids!" Jerry called to her as she went to catch up with her friends.

"Alex, wait! I almost forgot..."

"What is it?"

"I found this when I was helping your mother clean the basement."

She blinked in surprise when her dad handed her a well worn magazine.

"What's this?"

"A fashion magazine from 1958. Since you and Harper are so into fashion, I thought you'd get a good laugh from some of those pictures."

"Oh... Thanks, Dad."

As Alex returned to Mason and Harper she began to thumb through the magazine.

"What's that?" Harper asked.

"An old magazine my dad gave me. He found it in the basement. God, look at these clothes! And their hair!" Alex laughed.

Harper and Mason glanced at the magazine and joined in with Alex's laughter.

"I'm certainly glad you don't wear things like that, Alex!" Mason said, trying to hide his amusement.

Alex turned the page, stunned at the sight. There on the page was an ad for the very dress she'd sketched earlier in the meeting with Don Draper, in a stunning shade of fuchsia. And underneath the ad were the words, Original concept and advertising by Don Draper of Sterling Cooper.

Her blood boiled.

"That thief!"

Something wrong, Alex?" Mason asked, surprised by her outburst.

"He stole my idea!" she replied.

"And mine too!" Harper added, glancing at the ad in disbelief.

"Alex!"

When Alex turned to find her mother running toward her, she groaned.

"What have I done wrong now? She probably wants me to recite Spanish words again. Haven't I been though enough for one day?"

"Alex, wait! You forgot something!"

"Mom what could I possibly be-MR. SNUGGLES! Oh my God, where did you find him?"

"Honey he was buried in the basement in that mound of toys! You must have overlooked him."

Overcome with joy, Alex hugged Mr. Snuggles to her chest twirling around and around.

"Oh I missed you, Mr. Snuggles! I missed you so-."

Noticing the stares of her parents, Harper and Mason, Alex sat Mr. Snuggles gently onto the kitchen counter.

"I'll be back later." She whispered into the stuffed panda's ear.

"We'd better go." Mason said. "The movie's gonna start soon."

"Okay, but just a second." Alex said.

She grabbed the magazine and a black marker, quickly flipping to the ad she'd seen earlier.

And next to the words Original concept and advertising by Don Draper of Sterling Cooper she wrote...

...And Russo.

THE END


End file.
